This is a great write-up, not just for the ostensible goal (more privacy and security with maintainable infrastructure) but also because it lays out some reusable primitive for other “home lab” type projects.

The next stop down this fun slippery slope is kubernetes :)

That said, it also is worth mentioning NextDNS as an option. It basically is “pihole as a service” and is reasonably affordable. I ended up going that route to achieve similar goals as to the author and have been happy with it.